Got that itchy GandCrab feeling? Ransomware decryptor offers relief

Claw back your stuff without paying asshat for pricey cracker

White hats have released a free decryption tool for GandCrab ransomware, preventing the nasty spreaders of the DIY malware from asking their victims for money.

GandCrab has been spreading since January 2018 via malicious advertisements that lead to the RIG exploit kit landing pages or via crafted email messages impersonating other senders, infecting an estimated 53,000 computers in the process.

In exchange for the decryptor, the crooks behind GandCrab ask for a ransom of anywhere between hundreds and hundreds of thousands of dollars in DASH, a crypto-currency that has just made its debut in cybercrime. The developers of GandCrab use a ransomware-as-a-service business model that allows people with little technical skill to get a piece of the action.

Ransomware demands tied to GandCrab infections have reached up to an exorbitant $600,000+, orders of magnitude higher than is common in ransomware scams. Ransomware scammers more typically demand between $300 and $500.

The newly developed (free) antidote works for all known versions of the ransomware. The nasty encrypts personal data on victims’ machines.

Security firm Bitdefender developed the GandCrab ransomware decryption tool in collaboration with Europol and Romanian Police. The effort is the latest under the No More Ransom project.

No More Ransom was launched in July 2016, introducing a new level of cooperation between law enforcement and the private sector to fight ransomware. ®